1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an entertainment device such as a video game device, which produces the game, and a personal computer, which can execute a program for a game.
2. Description of the Related Art
In an entertainment device such as a video game device, it is general to be able to operate an entertainment image displayed on a display unit by using an operation device, which can be operated by an operation person with both hands. A plurality of operation buttons are provided on the operation device, and the operation person controls a representation style of the entertainment device by operating these operation buttons variously and diversely. Most of operation buttons are buttons each having a cross-shaped or a round-shaped direction indicating operation button and a plurality of multipurpose buttons as operation buttons. Predetermined binary signals are output from any one of these buttons by a push operation.
As described above, a function of a conventional entertainment device is formed on the assumption that the operation device is constructed with the direction indicating operation button and the multipurpose button. A signal output by the push operation of each of these operation buttons is either one of on or off signal. Therefore, the control mode of the display image displayed on the display unit becomes digital. Recently, an example that an analog input device, which is constructed by a track ball and a joystick, etc., is added to the operation device and the display pattern of the display image can be controlled in an analog fashion, can be seen. However, since such an analog input device is different from a digital input device such as the direction indicating operation button and multipurpose button in operativeness, it is inconvenience to operate according to the use of both of input devices.
On the other hand, it is well known that there is a tendency that a power, which pushes an operation mechanism of the operation device by the operation person, becomes strong, when the game becomes fever. If such a tendency can be reflected in the control of the display image, it is expected that the pattern of the image expression is diversified and amusement is raised.
A main subject matter of the present invention is to provide an entertainment device, which can diversify a representation style of an entertainment image and a computer program to achieve the entertainment device with the computer.
An entertainment device according to the present invention is characterized by comprising: an operation device comprising a plurality of push operation mechanisms, each of which outputs a multi-level signal indicating one of three or more values, which change according to the amount of the push operation; data hold means, which holds an image expression data to display one entertainment image by a different representation style by associating with an identification information of the corresponding representation style and an identification information of said push operation mechanism to which an input is scheduled, and a value of a multi-level signal; detection means to detect a value of the identification information and the multi-level signal of said push operation mechanism input from said operation device; data retrieval means, which specifies the identification information of the detected said push operation mechanism and the identification information of said representation style corresponding to the value of the multi-level signal and retrieves an image expression data corresponding to the identification information of the specified representation style from said data hold means; display control means to change the representation style of a displayed entertainment image based on the retrieved image expression data; and display means to display the entertainment image on a predetermined display unit. It is preferable that a value of said multi-level signal reversibly changes according to an amount of said push operation.
An xe2x80x9centertainment imagexe2x80x9d is an image, which produces the game or other amusement. An xe2x80x9cimage expression dataxe2x80x9d is data for displaying the entertainment image on the display unit and expressing a change in the image. The player character, which is operated by the operation person through the operation device, the possession goods, and the image of an object around the corresponding player character are listed as an example of the entertainment image. The data hold means holds the image expression data to change one of an expression aspect of these images, an action pattern of the player character, an action power of the player character, an effect of possession goods, an action degree of the player characters and the possession goods to the object according to the value of said multi-level signal by associating with the identification information of each of the representation style. The expression aspect is, for example, one of an aspect, which subjectively looks at a circumference from eyes of the player character, an aspect, which objectively looks at a circumference including the player character, and an aspect, in which the player character looks at the object fixedly. An effect of the possession goods is, for example, a size and a power of the possession goods, which continuously change according to the value of the multi-level signal. One of the action degrees of the player character to the object restrains a movement of the player character centering on the specified object.
In such an entertainment device, when an amount of the push operation of the push operation mechanism changes, a multi-level signal corresponding to the change is input thereto. The image expression data is specified by a value of the multi-level signal and the entertainment image of the predetermined expression is displayed on the display unit. Since a multi-level signal has one of three or more values, the display of the image of various patterns becomes possible.
Each of said plurality of push operation mechanisms in the operation device comprises a control button, which enables a operation person the push operation, a conductive material fitted to the control button, a resistance arranged to a position opposed to the conductive material, a push detection circuit, which outputs an analog electric signal corresponding to a contact area of the conductive material and the resistive element changed according to the amount of the push operation of said control button, and a signal conversion circuit, which converts detected electric signals into a multi-level signal, which shows either of a digital value being three or more values, and the multi-level signal output from said signal conversion circuit is input to said detection means one by one. By performing an operation with the operation device constructed by such a configuration, it becomes possible to control digital signal like an analog data.
Another entertainment device according to the present invention is characterized by comprising: an operation device comprising a push operation mechanism, which outputs a multi-level signal indicating one of three or more values which change according to an amount of a push operation and a signal selection mechanism which selectively outputs one of a predetermined plurality of kinds of binary signals; data hold means, which holds an image expression data to display one entertainment image by a different representation style by associating with an identification information of the corresponding representation style and a combination pattern of a value of a multi-level signal and a binary signal to which an input is scheduled; detection means to detect a value of the multi-level signal and the binary signal input from said operation device; data retrieval means which specifies the identification information corresponding to the detected combination pattern and retrieves an image expression data according to a specified identification information from the data hold means; display control means which displays an entertainment image on a display unit and changes a representation style of the displayed entertainment image based on the retrieved image expression data; and display means to display the entertainment image on a predetermined display unit.
In such an entertainment device constructed described above, when the amount of the push operation of the push operation mechanism changes, a multi-level signal corresponding to the change thereof is input. The image expression data is specified by a value of this multi-level signal and the entertainment image of the predetermined expression is displayed on the display unit. Since a multi-level signal has one of three or more values, the display of the image of various patterns becomes possible.
The entertainment device of the present invention can be achieved by reading and executing the program for the entertainment on the computer for the entertainment with which a display unit and above-mentioned operation device are connected. This program usually is a program recorded on a computer readable record medium. If it is a computer readable configuration, it does not necessarily require being recorded on the record medium. The processing, which the computer executes by this program, is the following.
(1) A processing to hold an image expression data to display one entertainment image by a different representation style on a predetermined memory area by associating with an identification information of the corresponding representation style and an identification information of said push operation mechanism to which an input is scheduled, and a value of a multi-level signal;
(2) A processing to detect a value of the identification information and the multi-level signal of said push operation mechanism input from said operation device;
(3) A processing to specify the identification information of the detected said push operation mechanism and the identification information of said representation style corresponding to the value of the multi-level signal and retrieve an image expression data corresponding to the identification information of the specified representation style from said memory area; and
(4) A processing to display the entertainment image on a predetermined display unit and change the representation style of a displayed entertainment image based on the retrieved image expression data.
According to the present invention as explained above, since an identification information of the push operation mechanism of the control button and a multi-level signal corresponding to the amount of the push operation of the control button are input and the representation style of the entertainment image can be changed according to the value of the multi-level signal, a particular effect such that the expression of the image of various patterns becomes possible can be obtained compared with a conventional technique.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out hereinafter.